The tune, one of multiple songs they've made up on the spot, helps keep calm amid chaos.

"You do it or you go insane," explains Karla Anderla, who has worked at the stand for more than a decade and wears handmade fudge puppies earrings.

High-profile job

The Great Minnesota Get-Together brings multitudes of fairgoers over a 12-day period. It makes the event one of the most sought-after locations for food vendors — more than 200 apply annually and this year just six new vendors were approved.

It took St. Cloud's Pat Braun five years of applying before Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies earned its spot. It's now in its 25th year at the fair. The stand is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

"Each day is a marathon," Braun said. "You never know what problem you have to troubleshoot."

The most hectic day of the fair for vendors is the first day.

While the Thursday opener generally has light attendance — the 2014 crowd was announced at 94,256 — it is the template for the days ahead.

"It's always the most challenging," Braun said. "Each day you work out kinks. But you start to synchronize and get in a rhythm.

"As the days go, you get to breathe a little bit."

The 2014 Minnesota State Fair opened with rain, adding even more stress.

"I was driving in torrential rain," Braun said. "I could barely see my way here."

Team Fudge Puppy

Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies has a core of 10 employees who work the fair each year. But they hire new help annually.

The first day serves as training for the new employees. And while it was a slower day, the stand sold more than a thousand of its original fudge puppies last Thursday. Each of its four varieties of fudge puppies costs $5.

The Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies stand separates its workforce into two shifts.

Braun runs things during the morning shift. Her daughter runs the evening shift.

Braun, who stays at a friend's house nearby during the fair, is never more than a phone call away. She often has to troubleshoot issues. And sometimes she even has to come back.

"You never know when there will be an issue at midnight," Braun says.

But while the stress of the fair is high, veteran vendors have little tricks — like making up your own songs — to help smoothly weather the rush.

"We even have people request certain songs," said Anderla, whose daughter Bre also works at the stand. "It's taken a life of its own."

CLOSE

It took five years for the Granny’s Kitchen Fudge Puppies stand to become a reality at the Minnesota State Fair.
St. Cloud Times

Behind the fudge puppies

Pat Braun of St. Cloud spent a year researching the fair food game.

She wanted to create a unique specialty that tasted good but didn't require a deep fryer like most traditional fair food.

She settled on fudge puppies. It's a rolled up Belgian waffle on a stick that's dipped in chocolate and served with whipped cream.

The stand serves four varieties — original, English toffee, chocolate turtle and Choklit Xtreme — with each featuring different toppings.

"My intention was to start a new food trend," said Braun, who wanted to have a job that could include her kids. "I wanted to be unique and different, and just pave my own path."

Braun said it took her about a decade to educate Minnesota State Fair-goers about her product. Her stand was once profiled by the Discovery Channel.

Her stand now has superfans who order as many as five fudge puppies a day and share their passion on the group's Facebook page. Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies will next be at the Little Falls Craft Show on Sept. 6-7.

"For the longest time, the hardest part was getting them to try it," Braun said. "The best part is to see them take that first bite, their eyes roll back and their knees buckle because it was so much more than they expected."

Bre Anderla, 18, finishes the fudge puppies with the addition of the whipped cream, sauce and sprinkles. This is Anderla's first year working in the stand after being recruited through her mother, Karla, who has been working at Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies for over a decade.
Bre McGee, Special to the Times

Karla Anderla dons her handmade fudge puppy earrings. Anderla has been working at Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies stand for over a decade. This year's State Fair is the first year for her daughter, Bre, working at the stand.
Bre McGee, Special to the Times

Bre Anderla, 18, finishes the fudge puppies with the addition of the whipped cream, sauce and sprinkles. This is Anderla's first year working in the stand after being recruited through her mother, Karla, who has been working at Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies for over a decade.
Bre McGee, Special to the Times

Chris Wick of Minneapolis waits patiently for Calvin Prodger, 17, to complete the finishing touches on her fudge puppy. Wick and her son, Jasper, visits Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies as their first stop in the morning at the fair each year.
Bre McGee, Special to the Times

Chris Wick and her son, Jasper, 10, of Minneapolis, carefully bite into the fresh fudge puppies. They visit Granny's Kitchen Fudge Puppies as their first stop in the morning at the fair each year.
Bre McGee, Special to the Times